RAF Snaith was a large airfield that was used to launch bombing raids in World War II. It was near the village of Snaith in Yorkshire, but it was actually in the adjacent village of Pollington. It could not be called RAF Pollington for two reasons.
The first was the Pollington sounds very much like Pocklington, another village in Yorkshire that also had an airfield. The call signs of the radio sounded too similar that it was thought the pilots would get mixed up about where to land. Also, it was thought to be a good idea not to advertise the exact location of the airfield.
The small village quadrupled in size during the war as lots of RAF and army personel were stationed there. Buildings used in the war still stand today and parts of the three runways still exist.
However, most of the airfield was covered up during the building of the M62, which now runs just to the north of Pollington.
The first was the Pollington sounds very much like Pocklington, another village in Yorkshire that also had an airfield. The call signs of the radio sounded too similar that it was thought the pilots would get mixed up about where to land. Also, it was thought to be a good idea not to advertise the exact location of the airfield.
The small village quadrupled in size during the war as lots of RAF and army personel were stationed there. Buildings used in the war still stand today and parts of the three runways still exist.
However, most of the airfield was covered up during the building of the M62, which now runs just to the north of Pollington.
